


Truth

by Jeremy_the_Guy



Category: Hilda (Cartoon)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-12 05:00:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29379606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jeremy_the_Guy/pseuds/Jeremy_the_Guy
Summary: Having gone through her very first grounding, Hilda has been given a lot of time to think about everything that has happened between her and her mother. And so, having thought long and hard about it, she's decided that the time has come to fill Johanna in on some of the things she's experienced.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 29





	Truth

A cup of hot cocoa on a grey and rainy day was usually the sort of thing Hilda enjoyed. Getting to be indoors at home with something tasty, on any other day, would have been exactly the level of cosiness the young adventurer would have lived for, maybe with a spot of nice music on the radio to go along with it. However, today was not your average day in her home, and as she took her first sip of the drink she sat opposite her mother, who was similarly looking down to her own cup. Hilda definitely looked nervous, and as she glanced over to Alfur on his side of the table, who was drinking out of a miniature cup of his own, it was obvious that he shared her worries too. Twig sat beside her, looking up and just generally waiting for someone to say or do something, which was taking quite a bit. Johanna, for her part, simply looked deep in thought, drumming her fingers on the cup's side as she took in all that had been said to her. After what seemed like an eternity, Hilda's lone parent finally broke the silence. "...Time travel, you say?"

Hilda sighed, giving a nod. "Yes."

Johanna took another sip before continuing. "Well, Hilda. I hope it goes without saying that I'm disappointed that you broke your grounding for this."

Hilda nodded. "I know, and I'm sorry for it."

Johanna then cast an eye in Alfur's direction. "And I hope you understand, Alfur, that I'm disappointed in you for letting things get out of hand like that."

The Elf hung his head, looking about as embarrassed as he was able. "I know, I know."

After a moment, Johanna took a deep breath before addressing him again. "Then again, I doubt you'd have been able to stop her. Hilda tends to break away from restrictions well, it seems."

Alfur perked up, if only slightly. "Would it make you feel better if I told you she was technically within the boundaries of the rules you set up for most...of...your..." After seeing the arched eyebrow the older woman was giving him, he shrunk back into his tiny chair. "Um, no, I guess not."

Johanna looked again to her daughter. "Hilda, I hope you realise that this sort of thing is exactly why I spend so much time worried about you. Going to the past and interfering in someone else's life is bad enough, but causing some monster to try and eat you?!"

Hilda held herself, not wanting to look her mother in the eye. "I know. I just...I thought I was helping." She looked up to her mother moments afterwards. "If you'd have been there, seeing him so sad at missing out on that chance to be with Tildy..." She didn't finish, perhaps out of some feeling that her mother would not, in fact, have been of the same mind as her on that count.

To her surprise though, Johanna actually cracked a small smile. "I suppose the urge to play matchmaker does get rather strong at times, especially if you have a particularly sweet couple right in front of you." She watched as her daughter too smiled, perhaps believing that this little confession on her part was going better than expected. However, Johanna took only a second before assuming a more serious visage, putting her cup down before looking Hilda right in the eye. "I hope you coming to me about this is a sign that you won't be keeping big secrets anymore?"

Hilda sat there in silence for a time, looking down at whatever reflection of herself she could make out from her remaining drink. Then, after being given all that time to think, she gave a solemn nod. "Yes. That whole thing gave me a lot to think about, and...and you're right to want to know what I do out there." She saw her mother smile once more, giving her leave to speak again. "So...what would you like to know first?"

Johanna considered that, then gave her answer. "Well, let's start with the tale we're already on. You said that Mrs Pilqvist started that whole time debacle going when she was young…and cast a spell?"

Instantly, Hilda realised what she'd done, letting that particular information slip, and immediately looked away, fumbling her words. "Oh...erm...what I meant was..."

But Johanna raised a hand, stopping her. "Mrs Pilqvist is a witch, isn't she?"

The words had been said without anger or malice, but even so Hilda was shock to have heard them. "You...you know about the witches?"

To that, Johanna gave a small but knowing smile. "My dear girl, I grew up in Trolberg. Stories and rumours of witches living here go as far back as the founding of the city itself. Every child has heard the legends at least once in their lives, though who the witches were or what they did was never exactly common knowledge."

Realising that her mother wasn't going to accept any cover story Hilda gave to protect Tildy's identity, she sighed deeply, giving a slow nod. "Yes. She's a witch." Her smile returned shortly afterwards. "And apparently a very famous and powerful one too."

Johanna chuckled. "I see. Quiet and friendly Mrs Pilqvist from just around the corner, secretly a powerful leader of witches. Who would have guessed?"

Hilda's smile widened, and she looked over to Alfur before again giving her mother her full attention. "And that's not all. Did you know there are other Elves here in the city?"

That certainly seemed to catch Johanna off-guard and she too looked over to their resident Elf. "Really?"

Alfur nodded, getting up from his chair before taking on a look of pride in himself. "Indeed there are! And I had the honour of personally seeing to it that their long-standing exile from our society was brought to and end!" He paused, then chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head before continuing. "Even though, technically, they wanted to stay here in the city afterwards."

Johanna seemed genuinely interested in that, but soon afterwards she looked back to Hilda, her seriousness once more taking centre stage in her expression. "Every once in a while, I'll hear a troubling rumour. Something that sounds unbelievable but, on some level, I'm worried you might be a part of. Now that we're talking about all of this, I want you to tell me if I was right in suspecting that."

Hilda braced herself. "Alright...go ahead."

Johanna frowned slightly. "The kraken?"

Hilda winced, but answered all the same. "Yes...I was there."

Her mother's grip on her cup tightened, but it loosened shortly afterwards. "I didn't want to think of you being near that creature..." She paused, thinking on her next words. "But I'm guessing you had good reason for it?"

Hilda nodded. "I did. Everyone in the city thought it was the Lindworm causing all those attacks on the boats. But I knew her, and that she was innocent. And I knew she was going to be in trouble if I didn't do something to stop everyone going to her."

Johanna was taken aback by that. "You...knew her?"

Here, Alfur stepped up. "I'm afraid you can blame me for that particular encounter, Johanna. Hilda and Frida were only there because of my attempts to reconcile with the Elves we mentioned earlier. I won't bore you with details, but long-story-short the Lindworm's help was absolutely necessary on that occasion."

Johanna looked understandably worried, but also accepted Alfur's words on the matter, giving a small nod to him. "I see." Slowly, she turned again to Hilda. "I want to make something perfectly clear to you, Hilda." She set her cup to one side before continuing. "That you and Frida and David get mixed up in all of these dangerous things terrifies me to no end. Creatures like krakens and Lindworms and Marra are things even we adults wouldn't want to contend with, and there you all are, still children, rushing right on into them."

Though associating with magical beasts like the ones her mother had just described was akin to just another day in the office for Hilda, she couldn't help but feel the same raw worry the latter was letting off with her tone. "I know, Mum."

Johanna, recognising that her daughter was at least on the same page as her in this, eased off just a little, but nevertheless continued with what she had to say. "But...I also have to admit that the three of you do good in getting involved in it all." Seeing the look of surprise and confusion on Hilda's face after that, she continued. "As much as I don't want to think about it, a lot of folks here in Trolberg would either turn a blind eye to the things that happen, or else make them worse, as what I suspect might have been the case with the kraken." She offered a slight smile to the child in front of her. "A lot of the time it really does seem like you and your friends are the only ones in this city who can resolve a problem without it all descending into an utter mess."

Hilda, despite reservations, found herself giggling just a little bit. "Well, I wasn't going to say anything."

Johanna allowed her that brief moment of sass. "You know, we grown-ups are supposed to be the responsible ones, fixing all the big problems so you children don't have to. But now it's come to the point where I honestly don't want to think about how it might have played out if you don't get involved." She took hold of her cup, downing what remained in a single gulp. "Makes it rather conflicting for me, as you can imagine."

Hilda nodded, showing agreement with that sentiment. Then, after thinking about it for a while, she smiled again. "It's actually kind of funny when you stop and look back on it all. We moved here to Trolberg because you were worried about living among Elves and the Wood Man and giants and all the rest of them. Then we got here and it turns out there's just as many strange creatures and bizarre things going on than there were back home. Maybe even more."

Her mother laughed drily, having little choice but to accept her daughter's assessment of the situation. "I want to disagree, but I really can't. Trolberg really is more chaotic and strange than I ever gave it credit for. Certainly more than I remember it being when I was growing up here." Then, after a time of silence, wherein Hilda managed to finish the last of her own drink, Johanna again put her cup to the side. "Hilda...you mean the world to me. And day after day I find that either you go looking for trouble, or that trouble finds you. Though I hate to say it out loud, adventure really is your life, and I'm not always going to be able to stop you going out into it. Just..." She sighed. "Just promise me that you'll be honest with me about all this? And that you won't just leap out into the fray when you don't need to."

Hilda softened greatly in her expression, reaching out and placing her hands upon her mother's. "I promise I'll try, Mum. What happened between us over the last few days...I don't want that to be us for the rest of our lives."

Johanna looked to her gladly. "Nor do I."

Hilda got down from her chair, walking around the table, and as Johanna got up from her own chair she got down to one knee so her daughter could give her a hug. Alfur smiled to the heart-warming sight, and Twig would have likely done the same, but contented himself with just walking over and nuzzling Hilda affectionately. Then, before anyone had a chance to say anything else, there was a familiar sound that caught everyone's attention, and they all turned just in time to see their home's Nisse, Tontu, entering in from Nowhere Space. "Oh, I'm sorry. Am I interrupting something?" he asked innocently.

Johanna looked down to Hilda, who smiled lovingly back to her, before turning to their most recent house guest. "Not at all. I was just about to get another round of hot cocoa ready."


End file.
